So-called racial justice activist and civil rights attorney Lee Merritt was tapped by the Karmelo Anthony family to assemble the convicted murderer&#8217;s new legal team.
Anthony was convicted earlier this month for the murder of Austin Metcalf, 17, and has been sentenced to 35 years behind bars. The Anthony family has made clear that they will fight the conviction.
&#8220;Immediately after the conviction, Karmelo Anthony’s father reached out to me and asked for help assembling a new legal team to fight for his son’s future,&#8221; Merritt posted to X on Tuesday. &#8220;From that moment, we have been working nonstop to bring together experienced appellate and civil rights attorneys to review every aspect of this case and pursue relief through the courts.&#8221;
Merritt has worked with the families in high-profile racially-charged cases, including those of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery. He&#8217;s also known for <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XX_ked2jJGs">advancing</a> false rape and kidnapping claims against a Texas trooper, before body cam debunked the accusations.
&#8220;Today’s filing, formally replacing prior counsel and placing this new team on the record, is the first step in that process,&#8221; Merritt continued. &#8220;We remain committed to ensuring that Karmelo receives a full and fair review of his conviction and sentence, consistent with both the evidence and the law.&#8221;
&#8220;This is not about headlines; it is about due process, accountability, and the pursuit of justice for a young man whose life now depends on what happens on appeal,&#8221; he added.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Immediately after the conviction, Karmelo Anthony’s father reached out to me and asked for help assembling a new legal team to fight for his son’s future. From that moment, we have been working nonstop to bring together experienced appellate and civil rights attorneys to review… <a href="https://t.co/m4UQoDxlCv">pic.twitter.com/m4UQoDxlCv</a>
— Lee Merritt (@LeeMerrittesq) <a href="https://x.com/LeeMerrittesq/status/2069226547605639631?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 23, 2026</a></blockquote>
The new legal team includes Texas NAACP President Gary Bledsoe, appellate lawyer Russell Wilson II, and civil rights attorney Brooke Cluse, as first reported by TMZ. Journalist Sarah Fields highlighted on Tuesday that Cluse joined Ben Crump Law in 2023 and currently serves as chief of staff and executive liaison to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/from-michael-brown-to-makhia-bryant-meet-the-lawyer-whose-false-claims-fueled-a-generation-of-black-lives-matter-violence">Crump</a>, another widely known racial activist and attorney. Crump was involved in the racially charged cases of George Floyd, Trayvon Martin, Breonna Taylor, and Michael Brown, wherein he notably propagated the false “hands up, don’t shoot!” narrative.
Fields reported that Bledsoe was recently called out by a judge for potential misuse of artificial intelligence in a filing, but was able to dodge sanctions after an apology.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
NEW LEGAL TEAM ANNOUNCED FOR KARMELO ANTHONY APPEAL
A team including Texas NAACP President Gary Bledsoe, appellate attorney Russell Wilson II, and civil rights attorney Brooke Cluse has announced it is taking over Karmelo Anthony’s case and “will pursue all available avenues of… <a href="https://t.co/CWDkSepFSP">pic.twitter.com/CWDkSepFSP</a>
— Sarah Fields (@SarahisCensored) <a href="https://x.com/SarahisCensored/status/2069180441312313622?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 22, 2026</a></blockquote>
Days after Anthony was sentenced for the Metcalf murder, he claimed in a court filing that he was broke and couldn&#8217;t afford legal representation, despite the Anthony family receiving more than $635,000 through a crowdfunding campaign.
A filing formally requested a court-appointed appellate attorney, stating that Anthony is a “penniless, destitute, and indigent person, too poor to employ counsel to represent me on the appeal,” <a href="https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/frisco-murder-trial/one-day-after-conviction-karmelo-anthony-files-notice-of-appeal-and-says-he-cant-afford-a-lawyer/287-6c56a100-fea6-4d7e-87b6-b95370305c3f">according to WFAA.</a>
During an interview on &#8220;The Will Cain Show,&#8221; Jeff Metcalf, father of Austin Metcalf, <a href="https://x.com/WillCainShow/status/2069185680962416684">said</a> the Anthony family was monetizing his son&#8217;s death. Jeff said Anthony&#8217;s parents left the courtroom for the reading of victim-impact statements and for their son&#8217;s sentencing.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fck-austin-karmelo-anthony-supporters-harass-threaten-friends-of-slain-teen-outside-courthouse?author=Amanda+Prestigiacomo&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=7&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=‘F*ck+Austin%21’%3A+Karmelo+Anthony+Supporters+Harass%2C+Threaten+Friends+Of+Slain+Teen+Outside+Courthouse">‘F*ck Austin!’: Karmelo Anthony Supporters Harass, Threaten Friends Of Slain Teen Outside Courthouse</a>

ANTHONY TRIAL DAY 7_2026_0609

The Latest Development In Karmelo Anthony’s Case Comes With Baggage

Karmelo Anthony Family Taps Notorious Race Hustler For Appeal Fight

Austin Metcalf

Court

Karmelo Anthony

Race

Texas

Leftist civil rights leaders and race hustlers condemned the guilty verdict in Karmelo Anthony’s trial, claiming it was unjust and racist.
Anthony was convicted of murder on Tuesday after just two and a half hours of deliberations over the fatal stabbing of Austin Metcalf at a track meet in Frisco, Texas, in April 2025. While Anthony&#8217;s family peddled claims that he was targeted for his race and that Metcalf provoked him, video evidence shows that Anthony refused requests that he leave the track team&#8217;s tent before he stabbed Metcalf.
Despite the evidence and the quick verdict, some black leftists claimed the outcome was racially motivated. 
Dominique Alexander, a Dallas-based civil rights leader, political activist, and founder of the Next Generation Action Network, <a href="https://x.com/JayTC53/status/2064438950589354412">said</a>, “Black America should be very upset about what went on today.” He called the verdict “flawed” and &#8220;unjust.&#8221; 
The case’s result tells people that “black lives do not matter in the criminal justice system,” according to Alexander. It shows racism in law, Alexander said, demonstrating that black people will “be afforded the same laws as anybody else.” He added that he is not “playing the race card,” but presenting the fact that black people have suffered from these laws for 400 years.
A <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DZYM6qEBiZ6/?igsh=MTk3NTdtOXVyb2g1aA%3D%3D">post</a> shared on Instagram by Dr. Umar Johnson, a motivational speaker and author who has dubbed himself &#8220;prince of Pan-Africanism,&#8221; compared the Anthony case to the infamous Dred Scott decision of 1857, claiming that Anthony was “lynched by an all-white jury.” The post shared by Johnson also claimed that &#8220;black people aren’t allowed to defend themselves” and that there is “no justice!” 
<div id="attachment_1113393" style="width: 586px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1113393" class="wp-image-1113393 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Untitled-design-2026-06-10T123751.432-576x576.jpg" alt="" width="576" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Untitled-design-2026-06-10T123751.432-576x576.jpg 576w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Untitled-design-2026-06-10T123751.432-300x300.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Untitled-design-2026-06-10T123751.432-150x150.jpg 150w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Untitled-design-2026-06-10T123751.432-768x768.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/06/Untitled-design-2026-06-10T123751.432.jpg 1200w" sizes=" (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px" />Instagram — Dr. Umar Johnson</div>
<a href="https://x.com/AttorneyCrump/status/2064443533365264462">Ben Crump</a>, a prominent American civil rights attorney, said the case presents “hard questions about fairness, justice, and whose actions earn the benefit of understanding.”
&#8220;Those questions are not new, and we owe it to every family touched by this to keep asking them,&#8221; Crump added.
Civil rights attorney and CNN contributor Areva Martin also <a href="https://x.com/ArevaMartin/status/2064457541699178591">said</a> that Anthony’s verdict “raises questions.”
&#8220;This case is far from over. We should expect an appeal, including challenges related to the exclusion of Black jurors,&#8221; Martin added. &#8220;Faith in our courts requires more than a conviction or an acquittal. It requires confidence that every defendant was afforded a fair trial.&#8221;
Martin said that the reason this verdict will be difficult for the “African American community” to accept is due to the exclusion of “all of the black potential jurors.” Multiple black witnesses, however, said that Anthony was in the wrong and spoke highly of Metcalf. Martin also argued that Anthony pulled out the knife because he was “fearful of his life” and believed he would be injured, despite the fact that Metcalf said he would not fight Anthony.
Not everyone in the black community is upset by the verdict. Judge Glenda Hatchett, the prominent American attorney, author, and television personality, said in a <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reels/DZYXUqhTSSh/">video</a> on Instagram that she did not find a “basis for self-defense.” The testimony did not show &#8220;his life was in danger” or that it “justified the fatal stabbing,” according to Hatchett.
Coming from a “mother’s heart,” Hatchett said that parents must teach their children how to “think clearly” in these situations.
“He was not supposed to be in the tent,” Hatchett said. “He was asked to leave the tent. Why not just leave the tent?”

Leftist Race Hustlers Enraged After Karmelo Anthony Verdict: ‘Lynched By An All-White Jury’

Murder

trial

A number of devastating revelations against the defense team came to light this past week in the murder trial of Karmelo Anthony.
Anthony, who admitted to fatally stabbing 17-year-old student Austin Metcalf at a track meet in April 2025, is facing a first-degree murder charge and life in prison. The case has been tinged by race in the public, due to the glaring lack of mainstream media coverage and the narrative peddled by Anthony family advocates and supporters. Anthony is black and Metcalf is white.
<h3>Defense race narrative out the window </h3>
Though Anthony&#8217;s team has tried to make race a component of the murder — both inside and outside of the courtroom — witnesses have disrupted that narrative so far. A number of teen witnesses called to the stand by the state have been black, and they&#8217;ve all said Anthony was in the wrong, provoking the situation and not acting in self-defense. Though specific identities cannot be revealed because the witnesses are minors, Texas bureau chief for The Daily Mail, MaryAnn Martinez, posted on Friday that four out of the six teens who testified were black.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
We have now heard from six teens who were at the stadium the day Austin Metcalf was stabbed by Karmelo Anthony. Four out of the six are black . All have testified that Karmelo Anthony was asked to leave the Memorial HS team tent, provoked Austin Metcalf, and pulled a knife… <a href="https://t.co/5pQh7S83Zm">https://t.co/5pQh7S83Zm</a>
— MaryAnn Martinez (@MaryAnnreports) <a href="https://x.com/MaryAnnreports/status/2063012479127654848?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 5, 2026</a></blockquote>
In an emotional moment, one witness who knew both Anthony and the slain teen broke down crying about the murder, saying of Austin, &#8220;That was my brother, that was my brother that got stabbed.&#8221; <a href="https://x.com/SarahisCensored">Investigative journalist Sarah Fields</a>, who was in the courtroom, said the teen was asked if this was about race, to which he responded, &#8220;No, Austin was a leader and he protected us.&#8221; Fields also noted while reporting the testimony, &#8220;A large majority of these witnesses are not white.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Part three of thread <a href="https://t.co/4AGJVlhM3p">pic.twitter.com/4AGJVlhM3p</a>
— Sarah Fields (@SarahisCensored) <a href="https://x.com/SarahisCensored/status/2063769220215718219?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 7, 2026</a></blockquote>
Martinez reported that one student, who is black, &#8220;wanted to attack Anthony&#8221; after the stabbing. &#8220;The teammate explained that he was on the football team with Austin and he considered him family,&#8221; Martinez said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
New state witness Vincent Cooper, a coach at Frisco ISD, is now testifying how he was assigned to manage Karmelo Anthony after the stabbing and stop him from leaving the football stadium. Later, Cooper was asked to calm down a teammate of Austin Metcalf (pictured below) who was… <a href="https://t.co/NwwwB003dZ">pic.twitter.com/NwwwB003dZ</a>
— MaryAnn Martinez (@MaryAnnreports) <a href="https://x.com/MaryAnnreports/status/2062651763853873567?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 4, 2026</a></blockquote>
Notably, the defense team unsuccessfully objected when the jury was selected since no one on the jury is black. Supporters of Anthony outside the courthouse have also made racial remarks and denigrated Metcalf.
<h3>Anthony provoked the encounter</h3>
The defense team is offering a self-defense narrative, saying that Anthony was under Metcalf&#8217;s school&#8217;s track tent to seek shelter from bad weather. Some witnesses, however, say Anthony was asked to leave up to 15 times by different people and refused. He insulted the school&#8217;s football team, called those under the tent &#8220;p*ssies,&#8221; and called Metcalf a &#8220;b*tch,&#8221; according to testimony.
Anthony threatened Metcalf, who told him, &#8220;I&#8217;m not going to fight you at a track meet, bro,&#8221; a witness said, according to Fields&#8217; reporting. Anthony fatally stabbed the teen after Metcalf softly pushed or shoved him.
Additionally, some witnesses said Anthony was not fully sheltered beneath the tent before the confrontation, suggesting he wasn&#8217;t merely seeking shelter from hard rain. Others also said heavy rainfall occurred after the stabbing.
<h3>Defense witness says Anthony was wrong</h3>
In another key moment for the prosecution, a witness who was called to testify by the defense team on Saturday plainly stated that Anthony was &#8220;in the wrong.&#8221; The following exchange, <a href="https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/karmelo-anthony-murder-trial-frisco-day-3/4032788/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">reported</a> by NBC DFW, is between a teenage defense witness and Bill Wirskye, the lead prosecutor:
<blockquote>&#8220;You didn&#8217;t expect for there to be a stabbing?&#8221; Wirskye asked.
&#8220;No, sir,&#8221; the witness answered.
[&#8230;]
&#8220;Who was in the wrong that morning?&#8221; Wirskye asked.
&#8220;I think Karmelo was in the wrong,&#8221; the witness answered.
&#8220;Karmelo provoked this, didn&#8217;t he?&#8221; Wirskye asked.
&#8220;Yes, sir,&#8221; the witness answered.</blockquote>
The defense will continue to call witnesses to the stand on Monday.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/race-narrative-kicked-into-overdrive-after-jury-selected-in-austin-metcalf-murder-trial">Race Narrative Kicked Into Overdrive After Jury Selected In Austin Metcalf Murder Trial</a>

Screenshot 2025-04-05 at 9.43.51 AM

3 Key Moments From The Karmelo Anthony Trial You Should Know

The family of accused murderer Karmelo Anthony appears to be amping up allegations of racial bias after reports indicated Wednesday that no black jurors have been selected for Anthony&#8217;s trial.
Anthony, a 19-year-old black male, was charged with first-degree murder after he fatally stabbed high school student Austin Metcalf, who is white, at a track event in April 2025 in Frisco, Texas.
Anthony&#8217;s defense team challenged the prosecution striking potential black jurors from the jury pool, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJFT2uoOscI">according</a> to FOX 4. The judge denied the challenge, since jury selection was not based on race.
A spokesman for the Anthony family, Dominique Alexander, took to numerous social media platforms to complain about the jury selection. On X, he reposted a statement from Next Generation Action Network, an organization for which he serves as president. 
&#8220;The Next Generation Action Network is outraged by today’s jury selection process in the Karmelo Anthony trial,&#8221; the statement said. &#8220;The prosecution used its final strikes to remove the remaining qualified Black jurors from the jury pool, raising serious concerns about fairness and equal justice.&#8221;
&#8220;We respect the court, but we will not remain silent,&#8221; the statement continued. &#8220;NGAN will continue monitoring this case and informing the public every step of the way. Every person deserves a fair trial and confidence that justice is being administered without bias. We are calling on the court to ensure Mr. Anthony’s constitutional rights are fully protected. <a class="css-1jxf684 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-poiln3 r-1loqt21" dir="ltr" role="link" href="https://x.com/hashtag/FairTrial?src=hashtag_click">#FairTrial</a> <a class="css-1jxf684 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-poiln3 r-1loqt21" dir="ltr" role="link" href="https://x.com/hashtag/EqualJustice?src=hashtag_click">#EqualJustice</a> <a class="css-1jxf684 r-bcqeeo r-1ttztb7 r-qvutc0 r-poiln3 r-1loqt21" dir="ltr" role="link" href="https://x.com/hashtag/NGAN?src=hashtag_click">#NGAN</a>.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
The Next Generation Action Network is outraged by today’s jury selection process in the Karmelo Anthony trial. The prosecution used its final strikes to remove the remaining qualified Black jurors from the jury pool, raising serious concerns about fairness and equal justice.
We…
— Next Generation Action Network (NGAN) (@NextGenAction) <a href="https://x.com/NextGenAction/status/2062297348789752311?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 3, 2026</a></blockquote>
Journalist Sarah Fields reported on Wednesday that no black jurors had been selected, and the jury will not be sequestered for the trial.
&#8220;The jury has been selected in the Karmelo Anthony trial,&#8221; she posted online. &#8220;Karmelo Anthony supporters are angry because there are no African Americans on the jury.&#8221;
&#8220;Also, up until now, we were under the impression that the jury would be sequestered. They were not,&#8221; Fields added. &#8220;This means jurors will return home each day rather than being isolated for the duration of the trial.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
BREAKING: The jury has been selected in the Karmelo Anthony trial.
Karmelo Anthony supporters are angry because there are no African Americans on the jury.
Also, up until now, we were under the impression that the jury would be sequestered.
They were not.
This means jurors…
— Sarah Fields (@SarahisCensored) <a href="https://x.com/SarahisCensored/status/2062300230922420554?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 3, 2026</a></blockquote>
About two weeks after Metcalf was killed, Alexander held a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/family-of-karmelo-anthony-hosted-the-most-disgusting-press-conference-ive-ever-seen">jarring press conference</a> on behalf of the Anthony family. He stoked racial tensions and scolded Jeff Metcalf, the father of the slain teen, for asking if he could pray with the Anthony family. Metcalf was removed from the presser.
As previously noted by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/family-of-karmelo-anthony-hosted-the-most-disgusting-press-conference-ive-ever-seen">The Daily Wire</a>, Alexander has a disturbing criminal history himself, including a conviction for child abuse involving his girlfriend&#8217;s 2-year-old son, who suffered a brain bleed. He was also indicted in 2019 on a felony family-violence charge involving allegations by a former girlfriend.
The killing of Metcalf has garnered national attention, including scrutiny of the coverage from legacy media, which routinely highlights and escalates white-on-black incidents. In this case, mainstream outlets were largely silent on the incident, seemingly because Anthony is black and Metcalf is white.
According to eyewitness accounts, the confrontation between Metcalf and Anthony began when Metcalf told Anthony to leave his team’s tented area during the track meet. It’s unclear if Metcalf touched Anthony at all before the stabbing. Witnesses told investigators that Anthony threatened Metcalf, pulled out a knife, stabbed him, and ran from the scene. Metcalf later died in his twin brother’s arms.
Anthony admitted to police that he stabbed Metcalf, reportedly telling officers, “I’m not alleged, I did it.”
The 19-year-old is being tried as an adult and is facing life behind bars.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/free-karmelo-supporters-of-austin-metcalfs-accused-killer-gather-outside-courthouse">‘Free’ Karmelo: Supporters Of Austin Metcalf’s Accused Killer Gather Outside Courthouse</a>

Race Narrative Kicked Into Overdrive After Jury Selected In Austin Metcalf Murder Trial

Crime

A planned production of “Dreamgirls” will have to be canceled after the owners pulled the rights because too many white actors were cast in the show.
According to <a href="https://www.thetimes.com/culture/theatre-dance/article/urlschool-dreamgirls-show-banned-tfnfvqldv">The Times of London</a>, Gillian Banks Theatre School in Yorkshire was granted permission to stage &#8220;Dreamgirls&#8221; by the agency that manages the show&#8217;s rights. But that permission was revoked after it was discovered that only one black actor would be participating.
The musical was written by Tom Eyen and Henry Krieger in 1981 and opened that same year at the Imperial Theater on Broadway. It was nominated for 13 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and won six. It became even more popular following the release of the 2006 film adaptation starring Beyoncé. 
The storyline follows a fictional group of black female singers, the Dreamettes, on their path to superstardom beginning in the 1960s.
The theater school responded to the controversy, defending their casting by saying they were open to a “diverse” cast but did not have enough black actors audition.
“We are just a little dance school in one of the most deprived areas of Rotherham trying to give experiences to our students on a very small scale,” it said, per The Times.
The school reportedly only has around 200 students and said there was “never any intention to ‘whitewash’ this production.” Gillian Banks Theatre School had already started selling tickets when the permission to perform was revoked.
Concord wrote in a letter to the school, “Dreamgirls is a show about a time in black American music history when rhythm and blues blended with other styles of popular music, creating a new American sound.”
“It tells the story of the Dreamettes and celebrates their rise to fame, echoing similar trajectories of iconic black girl and boy groups of the time like the Supremes, the Marvelettes, the Temptations and the Shirelles. Your production should be appropriately cast to represent and reflect these artists and their history.”
This update comes as the topic of race-swapping traditionally white characters continues to make headlines. The upcoming Christopher Nolan epic, “The Odyssey,” has drawn criticism for the casting of Lupita Nyong’o as Helen of Troy, among other stylistic choices. 
It was also just announced that actress Quinta Brunson will star as Betty Boop in an upcoming film adaptation. Disney’s big flop “Snow White” included Colombian actress Rachel Zegler in the titular role despite her not physically resembling the character’s description in literature.

Dreamgirls

Agency Yanks ‘Dreamgirls’ Over School’s Mostly White Cast

School Casts Too Many White Kids In 'Dreamgirls,' Agency Yanks Rights To The Show

Entertainment

Racial Discrimination

Theater

United Kingdom

It was <a href="https://variety.com/2026/film/news/quinta-brunson-betty-boop-movie-1236754550/">announced this week</a> that actress Quinta Brunson will star as Betty Boop in an upcoming film adaptation, sparking spirited discussion over Hollywood&#8217;s trend of casting traditionally white characters with actors of different races. 
Daily Wire host Matt Walsh criticized the decision after Discussing Film shared the announcement on social media.
“There is only one reason to bring back an iconic piece of Americana just to race swap it like this,&#8221; Walsh wrote. &#8220;Even a faithful Betty Boop reboot probably wouldn’t sell many tickets. A race swapped Betty Boop has absolutely no chance of success. But they do it anyway out of spite.&#8221;
Walsh later claimed the account blocked him and disabled comments on the post after the backlash intensified.
“This is a pretty interesting way to have a discussion about film,” he wrote in a follow-up post.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
The account “Discussing Film” turned off the comments and then blocked me. This is a pretty interesting way to have a discussion about film. <a href="https://t.co/XIrQNOiL4w">pic.twitter.com/XIrQNOiL4w</a>
— Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog/status/2057435837244035415?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 21, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Daily Wire host Michael Knowles also weighed in on the controversy during his show on Thursday.
&#8220;Betty Boop is a white lady. And it changes the story if you try to change that,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We&#8217;re told that race doesn&#8217;t matter. It&#8217;s a social construct. It&#8217;s totally meaningless. So all the white characters can and really should be played by black people or Hispanic people or just non-white people. But surely no one&#8217;s ever casting Tom Cruise to play Malcolm X in the autobiography of Malcolm X.&#8221;
As the controversy lit up online, many commenters argued that Betty Boop was actually based on a black woman, but even the left-leaning outlet PBS admitted that is a misrepresentation. 
“A short item promoting PBS’ Black History Month programming suggested the Betty Boop cartoon character was based on a black performer of the Jazz Age,” the outlet <a href="https://www.pbs.org/publiceditor/blogs/pbs-public-editor/betty-oops/">posted</a> in 2021. “That’s not entirely true.”
The outlet noted that Betty Boop is widely believed to have been inspired by jazz performer Helen Kane.
Betty Boop debuted on August 9, 1930, in the Fleischer Studios cartoon short “Dizzy Dishes,” in which she appeared as an anthropomorphic dog. Kane later sued Fleischer and Paramount Pictures in 1932, claiming Betty Boop was a “deliberate caricature” of her “baby vamp” persona, the outlet noted.
Despite these facts, there are plenty of commenters who insist Betty Boop was inspired by the black singer Esther Jones, or, at the very least, that Kane was ripping off Jones the whole time, thereby indirectly contributing to the creation of the character.
Brunson, best known for creating and starring in ABC&#8217;s “Abbott Elementary,” is developing and starring in the film adaptation through her company, Fifth Chance Productions, which teamed up with Mark Fleischer, who is the grandson of Betty Boop creator Max Fleischer, according to a Variety <a href="https://variety.com/2026/film/news/quinta-brunson-betty-boop-movie-1236754550/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a>. 
The outlet noted that the movie will trace the origin and evolution of Betty Boop through the perspective of her creator.
“Betty Boop is one of our nation’s most beloved cartoon characters, yet somehow still remains pleasantly niche,” Brunson wrote in a statement. “She has had a quiet but undeniable impact on culture for nearly a century. After Erin and I met with Mark and learned more about his grandfather’s creation of Betty, I realized there was a much deeper story to tell. One that could be explored in a way that feels refreshing, subversive, and timeless, much like Betty herself.”
Fleischer said, “When Quinta first approached me with the unique concept of a movie about the relationship of my grandfather, Max Fleischer, and his creation, Betty Boop, I was breathtaken. Quinta so embodies Betty’s love of life, intelligence, humor, sassiness and compassion that the relationship between her as Betty and Max burst into life at its mere mention.”

Betty Boop and Quinta Brunson

Hollywood’s Latest Race-Swap Debate Centers On Iconic Cartoon Character

Cartoon

Hollywood

Movies

On Wednesday, after the Supreme Court ruled that the Fifteenth Amendment’s prohibition on intentional racial discrimination forbids race-based redistricting, former President Barack Obama issued a screed denouncing the decision that was, in turn, harshly criticized on social media.
“Today’s Supreme Court decision effectively guts a key pillar of the Voting Rights Act, freeing state legislatures to gerrymander legislative districts to systematically dilute and weaken the voting power of racial minorities &#8211; so long as they do it under the guise of ‘partisanship’ rather than explicit ‘racial bias,’” Obama wrote on X. “And it serves as just one more example of how a majority of the current Court seems intent on abandoning its vital role in ensuring equal participation in our democracy and protecting the rights of minority groups against majority overreach. The good news is that such setbacks can be overcome. But that will only happen if citizens across the country who cherish our democratic ideals continue to mobilize and vote in record numbers &#8211; not just in the upcoming midterms or in high profile races, but in every election and every level.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Today’s Supreme Court decision effectively guts a key pillar of the Voting Rights Act, freeing state legislatures to gerrymander legislative districts to systematically dilute and weaken the voting power of racial minorities &#8211; so long as they do it under the guise of…
&mdash; Barack Obama (@BarackObama) <a href="https://twitter.com/BarackObama/status/2049561079605588184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 29, 2026</a></blockquote>
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The response came quickly:
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You have absolutely lost your mind.
YOU were the guy who was supposed to get us PAST sorting people by race.
You said judge people by character not color.
Now you&#39;re calling it &quot;voter suppression&quot; when the Court strikes down a district drawn ENTIRELY BY SKIN COLOR??!!
The… <a href="https://t.co/2NQ5Xq8Xmh">pic.twitter.com/2NQ5Xq8Xmh</a>
&mdash; Matt Van Swol (@mattvanswol) <a href="https://twitter.com/mattvanswol/status/2049579727061463538?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 29, 2026</a></blockquote>
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As with tour characterization of Citizens United, not true! Today’s voting-rights blockbuster was the right call and a victory for the colorblind Constitution. The bottom line is that the Voting Rights Act doesn’t require majority-minority districts and states can’t use race to…
&mdash; Ilya Shapiro (@ishapiro) <a href="https://twitter.com/ishapiro/status/2049590119485632845?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 29, 2026</a></blockquote>
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I can’t imagine being a nations first black president and wanting to take them all the way backwards on race but if you like your garbage legacy you can KEEP your garbage legacy.
&mdash; Jimmy Failla (@jimmyfailla) <a href="https://twitter.com/jimmyfailla/status/2049577005146845426?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 29, 2026</a></blockquote>
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It was pointed out that the districts as apportioned in Illinois, Obama’s home state, which is run by Democrats, are crazy:
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lol. This is your home state <a href="https://t.co/95DsjmFZox">pic.twitter.com/95DsjmFZox</a>
&mdash; Megan Basham (@megbasham) <a href="https://twitter.com/megbasham/status/2049628329876009449?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 29, 2026</a></blockquote>
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As well as the current map of Lousiana’s districts, which is well-nigh ridiculous:
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These are the 2 illegal racially gerrymandered districts that the Supreme Court overturned. Any fair map of Louisiana will look nothing like this 👇 <a href="https://t.co/UOzzq2Hus4">pic.twitter.com/UOzzq2Hus4</a>
&mdash; Izengabe (@Izengabe_) <a href="https://twitter.com/Izengabe_/status/2049604602404696464?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 29, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Justice Samuel Alito, writing for the court, stated, “Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was designed to enforce the Constitution — not collide with it. Unfortunately, lower courts have sometimes applied this Court’s precedents in a way that forces States to engage in the very race-based discrimination that the Constitution forbids.”
“Allowing race to play any part in government decision making represents a departure from the constitutional rule that applies in almost every other context,” he continued.
Obama’s denigrative use of the phrase “guise of partisanship” was a deliberate attempt to ignore that the Supreme Court opinion was in strict line with the fact that the United States is a constitutional republic. As Alito explained, “Disapproval of partisan gerrymandering dates back to the founding. But partisan gerrymandering claims are not justiciable in federal court. Thus, in considering the constitutionality of a districting scheme, courts must treat partisan advantage like any other race-neutral aim: a constitutionally permissible criterion that States may rely on as desired. For this reason, as we have repeatedly made clear, when a State defends a districting scheme on the ground that it was drawn for partisan purposes, plaintiffs have a ‘special’ burden to overcome.”

US-POLITICS-RIGHTS-JACKSON

‘Absolutely Lost Your Mind’: Obama Ripped After Criticizing Latest Supreme Court Decision

Barack Obama

Elections

gerrymandering

Louisiana

Politics

Redistricting

Supreme Court

This article is part of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/introducing-upstream-a-lifestyle-and-culture-section-of-the-daily-wire" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Upstream,</a> The Daily Wire’s new home for culture and lifestyle. Real human insight and human stories — from our featured writers to you.
***
A patient recently stopped midsentence during a session. He was describing a routine disagreement at work — a minor conflict over scheduling and communication — when he suddenly froze, backtracked, and added an unnecessary disclaimer: “I know I’m saying this as a white guy…” The comment had nothing to do with race. But in his mind, race had already entered the room.
That moment reflects something I’m seeing more and more among successful adults, especially white professionals in elite settings. Ordinary conversations that should feel routine are now approached like potential danger zones. Before they even know whether what they’re about to say is remotely controversial, people are editing themselves, adding disclaimers, and mentally preparing for how they might need to explain or retreat. What they think is heightened social awareness is often something closer to chronic anxiety.
Race has become a psychological minefield. Therapeutic language and anxiety-driven habits have moved beyond the consulting room into everyday life, reshaping how people think, speak, and relate to one another.
The problem isn’t empathy, reflection, or a sincere desire to get it right. Those are healthy. The problem is when reflection turns into constant self-monitoring, when people overanalyze ordinary phrasing and start treating basic exchanges like potential liabilities. At that point, it’s no longer sensitivity. It’s anxiety.
In therapy, this is a familiar pattern. People rehearse conversations before they happen, over-monitor their wording in real time, and replay exchanges afterward searching for signs they crossed a line. In workplaces, schools, and social circles, race discourse now trains people into that same habit. The reality is, people aren’t becoming more honest. They’re becoming more afraid.
The clearest example shows up among white professionals who feel the need to preface even basic observations with disclaimers about identity or privilege. But it doesn’t stop there. Teachers start second-guessing harmless classroom discussions. Parents tense up talking about race in front of their children’s friends. Executives over-script routine feedback conversations. Friends replay things they said at dinner, wondering whether a phrase landed the wrong way. The pattern is the same: Ordinary speech starts to feel loaded before the conversation even begins. Silence becomes the coping mechanism.
That’s where this stops being just cultural and becomes psychological. Once people begin avoiding ordinary conversations because the fear of social consequences, avoidance itself becomes the habit. And once that habit takes hold, the anxiety only deepens.
What’s especially concerning to me as a therapist is how familiar the pattern is. Someone feels a spike of fear, adds a disclaimer, softens the phrase, or avoids the comment altogether, and immediately feels a sense of relief. That teaches the brain the wrong lesson: that the danger was real and that self-censorship is what prevented the fallout. So the next time a similar conversation comes up, the anxiety shows up faster and hits harder because the brain has started to associate silence and over-editing with safety.
Over time, people become so afraid of saying the wrong thing that ordinary conversation starts to feel risky. They check every sentence for possible offense, replay exchanges long after they’re over, and fall into habits such as disclaimers, over-prefacing, and moral throat-clearing, all meant to signal innocence before anyone has even accused them of anything. The irony is that the very habits meant to calm the fear only make race feel more dangerous to discuss honestly.
That is how a culture meant to encourage dialogue slowly trains people to avoid honest conversation.
Elite institutions have made this worse. In workplaces, schools, and media, people are trained to second-guess ordinary language and over-explain even basic observations. The result is a constant habit of second-guessing. People become so focused on how every word might land that real conversation disappears, and exchange gives way to performance. This doesn’t improve dialogue. It shuts it down.
Good therapy helps people tolerate discomfort, reality-test their fears, and speak honestly without assuming the worst. A healthy culture should do the same. It should make room for candid discussion, curiosity, and disagreement without teaching adults to treat ordinary language like danger.
What much of elite race discourse now produces instead is self-censorship, guilt, and a widening culture of silence. That may spare people short-term discomfort, but it’s also normalizing the same fear patterns we usually associate with anxiety. That is far from social progress. It’s a culture teaching healthy adults to think like anxious patients.
***
Jonathan Alpert is a psychotherapist in New York City and Washington, D.C., and author of the forthcoming book “<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Therapy-Nation-America-Anxious-Divided/dp/1335000658" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Therapy Nation</a>.” Find him on X <a href="https://x.com/JonathanAlpert" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@JonathanAlpert</a>.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Why Saying The Wrong Thing Now Feels Like A Bigger Risk Than Staying Silent

Censorship

Upstream

The following is an edited transcript excerpt from <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-1903-the-three-million-new-pages-of-epstein-files-explained?elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel">The Michael Knowles Show</a>. 
* * *
Christopher Nolan is doing a movie about &#8220;The Odyssey,&#8221; Homer&#8217;s epic poem, and he has cast Lupita Nyong&#8217;o as Helen of Troy — the face that launched a thousand ships, the most beautiful woman in the Greek world.
Lupita Nyong&#8217;o is a very good actress. However, let&#8217;s just say she doesn&#8217;t look Greek.
She doesn&#8217;t have any of the features that are traditionally associated with Helen of Troy. Helen is portrayed as having very, very fair skin, sometimes slightly darker hair, sometimes blond hair. So it doesn&#8217;t quite match. Some people are making all sorts of nasty comments about Lupita Nyong&#8217;o, this perfectly nice-looking lady, who is certainly a very good actress.
This does not seem to serve the story, does it?
The purpose of casting is the same as acting, directing, editing, and producing — it&#8217;s to tell a story.
To cast Lupita Nyong&#8217;o in that role is to distract from the story. It undermines the story. She&#8217;s not fit for that part.
Philip Seymour Hoffman is probably the greatest actor of my lifetime. He’s just absolutely magnificent. It would be a little odd to cast Philip Seymour Hoffman as Malcolm X in “The Autobiography of Malcolm X,” wouldn&#8217;t it? He&#8217;s a very good actor. But there are limits.
There are limits to what an actor can do. There are limits to this entire world.
<h3><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-1903-the-three-million-new-pages-of-epstein-files-explained?elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel">WATCH: The Michael Knowles Show</a></h3>
There was a famous debate within the theater, by the way, on so-called &#8220;colorblind casting,&#8221; which is never really colorblind. They call it colorblind casting when they cast Lupita as Helen of Troy, but they don&#8217;t call it colorblind casting if they were to cast Philip Seymour Hoffman as Malcolm X. That would be an outrage. It would never happen.
So it&#8217;s not exactly colorblind. It&#8217;s just casting black and Latino people in white roles, and not casting white people at all.
There was a famous debate on this between Robert Brustein, who ran the American Repertory Theater, and August Wilson, who was probably the most famous black American playwright, perhaps ever. He wrote “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” he wrote “Fences,” which was a movie with Denzel Washington some years ago — a good playwright as far as contemporary playwrights go.
And Brustein, the white liberal, argued for colorblind casting. Oh yeah, anybody of any race, any background can play any part. And August Wilson, the black guy — or half-black guy — said, no, they can&#8217;t. He didn&#8217;t want white people to play roles where they&#8217;re a garbage collector in the early 20th century in black neighborhoods with black families. It doesn&#8217;t read. It takes you out of the story. It isn&#8217;t true.
And there&#8217;s obviously some wiggle room here in certain roles because actors pretend. But it is beyond the capacity of certain actors — of all actors — to overcome their natural limits.
Christopher Nolan&#8217;s a good director, but one can object to the casting without being offensive and mean-spirited; it just doesn&#8217;t make a lot of sense.
Someone on X/Twitter rightly put it, “this is now the face that launched a thousand quips because people think it&#8217;s kind of funny.”

The Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit Presented by CHANEL

Why Lupita Nyong’o As Helen Of Troy Does Not Work

Why Lupita Nyong'o As Helen Of Troy Does Not Work

actors

Blacks

Cultural Appropriation

Film

Whites

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has launched a <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/12/11/hud-boston-fair-housing-discrimination">sweeping civil rights investigation</a> into the city of Boston, accusing Democratic Mayor Michelle Wu’s administration of implementing housing policies that unlawfully favor black, Latino, and other minority residents. The probe, announced Thursday, represents one of the most aggressive federal interventions yet in the Trump administration’s broader effort to dismantle local diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives it argues violate anti-discrimination law.
In a <a href="https://www.hud.gov/sites/default/files/Main/documents/Letter-FHEO-Fair-Housing-Act-Investigation.pdf">sharply worded letter</a> to Wu, HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity said, “The context of race, fair housing is not about ‘the absence of racial discrimination . . . but the presence of deliberate systems . . . to achieve and sustain racial equity.’ But this is wrong. The text of the Fair Housing Act is unmistakably focused on eliminating discrimination in the housing market and outlining the penalties for engaging in this kind of discrimination.”
Assistant Secretary Craig Trainor wrote to Wu, “At your office’s direction, however, City officials have set out to smuggle ‘racial equity into every layer of operations in City government.’” The letter added, “City Officials Have Enthusiastically Embraced and Appear to Have Implemented the City’s Proposed Racial Spoils System.”
HUD Secretary Scott Turner echoed that language, calling Boston’s approach a “social engineering project” driven by DEI ideology rather than legitimate housing needs. “This warped mentality will be fully exposed,” Turner said, vowing the city would be brought into compliance with federal law. Turner has previously criticized what he calls race-based policymaking and, earlier this week, blamed former President Joe Biden for housing pressures tied to immigration, citing HUD’s newly released “Worst Case Housing Needs” report.
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At issue are several city housing plans—most notably the Boston Housing Strategy 2025, the Assessment of Fair Housing, and the Anti-Displacement Action Plan—which call for targeted outreach to black and Latino families, increased lending in communities of color, and allocations of homeownership opportunities intended “particularly” for BIPOC households. One goal states that 65 percent of city-supported homeownership opportunities should go to BIPOC residents. HUD argues that these provisions constitute explicit racial preferences prohibited under federal civil rights law and past Supreme Court precedent that rejects “outright racial balancing.”
HUD’s letter also criticizes Boston’s use of racially based data tools, including maps that classify neighborhoods partly by racial composition to identify areas at “high risk” of displacement and thus eligible for more city investment. The department said these classifications revive the logic of “government-sponsored redlining,” even if intended to combat inequity. It further alleges that city agencies and nonprofit partners have implemented “race-conscious marketing and buyer selection,” and that Boston has pressured banks and developers to adopt race-based benchmarks.
The investigation reflects the Trump administration’s broader shift in civil rights enforcement, which has increasingly targeted DEI programs while cutting back on traditional fair housing oversight.
HUD will request documents from the city within 10 days, after which investigators may file formal discrimination charges or refer the case to the Justice Department.

Michelle Wu

Trump Admin Accuses Boston Of Illegal Race-Based Housing Policies

Boston

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

Housing and Urban Development

Massachusetts

Social Issues

Former First Lady Michelle Obama is discussing America&#8217;s supposed racism and complaining about her time in the White House.
During an upcoming special, Good Morning America co-host Robin Roberts reads quotes from Obama&#8217;s new book, &#8220;The Look,&#8221; which, in part, opines about the scrutiny Obama says she felt from white people in America.
&#8220;You said, &#8216;We were all too aware that as the first black couple, we couldn&#8217;t afford any missteps,'&#8221; Roberts read. &#8220;And you also say, &#8216;As a black woman, I was under a particularly white hot glare.'&#8221;
&#8220;Did you feel that?&#8221; Roberts asked Obama.
&#8220;For sure,&#8221; she answered.
&#8220;You can&#8217;t afford to get anything wrong, because you didn&#8217;t &#8212; at least until the country came to know us &#8212; we didn&#8217;t get the grace that I think some other families have gotten,&#8221; the former first lady continued.
Radio host Buck Sexton commented on the remarks, &#8220;Starting to feel like maybe Michelle Obama is a bitter malcontent addicted to complaining about her incredibly privileged life.&#8221;
Join us now during our exclusive Deal of the Decade. Get everything for $7 a month. Not as fans. As fighters. Go to <a href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DailyWire.com/Subscribe</a> to join now.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Starting to feel like maybe Michelle Obama is a bitter malcontent addicted to complaining about her incredibly privileged life. 
<a href="https://t.co/1JN7Mi8dMt">pic.twitter.com/1JN7Mi8dMt</a>
— Buck Sexton (@BuckSexton) <a href="https://twitter.com/BuckSexton/status/1984629297730998762?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 1, 2025</a></blockquote>
Obama has talked about her time in the White House previously, calling it isolating and complaining that the family had to pay for their food and travel. The Obamas are reportedly worth $70 million.
“Much is not covered,&#8221; Obama <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/michelle-obama-complains-it-was-expensive-to-live-in-the-white-house?utm_source=chatgpt.com">said</a> earlier this year. &#8220;You’re paying for every food, every bit of food that you eat … you’re not paying for housing and the staff in it … but everything, even travel, if you’re not traveling with the president, if you&#8217;re kids are coming on a Bright Star, which is the first lady&#8217;s plane, we had to pay for their travel to be on the plane.&#8221;
Obama has focused much on race. Just days ago, she <a href="https://people.com/michelle-obama-reveals-why-she-never-wore-braids-in-the-white-house-exclusive-11838287">complained</a> about black women having to spend &#8220;thousands of hours&#8221; and lots of money on their hair if they try to straighten in, instead of wearing it natural and curly.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Michelle Obama complains that hairstyles are racist because black people have to spend more money and time to achieve them.
<a href="https://t.co/PkwP03MTpc">pic.twitter.com/PkwP03MTpc</a>
— ALX 🇺🇸 (@alx) <a href="https://twitter.com/alx/status/1983397897636024483?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 29, 2025</a></blockquote>
The former first lady also famously suggested in 2008 that it was the first time she was proud of her country as an adult woman when the nation voted for her husband during the Democrat presidential primaries.
&#8220;But what we’ve learned over this year is that hope is making a comeback,&#8221; she said at the time. &#8220;It is making a comeback and let me tell you something: For the first time in my adult lifetime, I’m really proud of my country.&#8221;
&#8220;And not just because Barack has done well, but because I think people are hungry for change,&#8221; Obama continued. &#8220;And I have been desperate to see our country moving in that direction and just not feeling so alone in my frustration and disappointment. I’ve seen people who are hungry to be unified around some basic common issues and it’s made me proud.&#8221;
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/michelle-obama-says-creating-life-is-the-least-of-what-a-womans-reproductive-system-does">Michelle Obama Says Creating Life Is ‘The Least’ Of What A Woman’s Reproductive System Does</a>

First Lady Michelle Obama Hosts 3rd Annual “Beating The Odds”

‘White Hot Glare’: Michelle Obama Complains About America’s Racism, Time In White House

Michelle Obama Complains About America’s Racism, Time In White House

Michelle Obama

Racism

White House

Students at Michigan State University hoping to become the educators of the next generation are forced to take a race-centered course that follows &#8220;the guiding principles of the Black Lives Matter&#8221; movement and requires students to read from a book condemning &#8220;whiteness.&#8221;
Course materials obtained by the <a href="https://yaf.org/news/race-obsessed-course-forced-on-future-educators-at-michigan-state/">Young America&#8217;s Foundation</a> group on MSU&#8217;s campus and shared with The Daily Wire show that one class for future teachers pushes leftist theories on race. The introductory three-credit class, &#8220;<a href="https://reg.msu.edu/Courses/Search.aspx?CourseID=342088#Results">TE 101: Social Foundations of Justice and Equity in Education</a>,&#8221; is required for all Secondary Education majors at MSU and is typically taken before their junior year. TE 101&#8217;s course description states that it emphasizes &#8220;racial justice, equity, and social identity markers.&#8221;
The syllabus for TE 101 states that the class is &#8220;committed to the Guiding Principles of the Black Lives Matter Movement, Learning for Justice’s Social Justice Standards, and the principles of the Abolitionist Teaching Network.&#8221;
One Michigan State education major, who wished to remain anonymous, told The Daily Wire that 90-100% of the class is focused on race.
&#8220;This class is an indoctrination of modern racial ideology,&#8221; the student said.
Asked if sitting through hours of leftist ideology becomes discouraging, the student replied, &#8220;No, it actually makes me want to pursue this degree more. It makes me want to be able to teach children instead of these other people.&#8221;
&#8220;Because I feel like there is a lack of conservatives in education,&#8221; the student added. &#8220;We see how the other side has done with these students.&#8221;
The only book TE 101 students are required to read for the semester includes a section that condemns &#8220;whiteness&#8221; as a privilege that &#8220;will never allow true solidarity to take place.&#8221;
The <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Want-More-Than-Survive-Abolitionist/dp/0807069159">book</a>, &#8220;We Want to Do More Than Survive: Abolitionist Teaching and the Pursuit of Educational Freedom,&#8221; by Bettina Love, &#8220;argues that the US educational system is maintained by and profits from the suffering of children of color.&#8221; The author writes that for education reform to take place, leaders must &#8220;approach education with the imagination, determination, boldness, and urgency of an abolitionist.&#8221;
One excerpt from the book focuses on how &#8220;whiteness&#8221; cannot be included in the fight for education reform.
<blockquote>“Whiteness cannot enter spaces focused on abolitionist teaching. Whiteness is addicted to centering itself, addicted to attention, and making everyone feel guilty for working toward its elimination. Whiteness will never allow true solidarity to take place. Those who cling to their Whiteness cannot participate in abolitionist teaching because they are a distraction, are unproductive, and will undermine freedom at every step, sometimes in the name of social justice. Being an abolitionist means you are ready to lose something, you are ready to let go of your privilege, you are ready to be in solidarity with dark people by recognizing your Whiteness in dark spaces, recognizing how it can take up space if unchecked, using your Whiteness in White spaces to advocate for and with dark people. And you understand that your White privilege allows you to take risks that dark people cannot take in the fight for educational justice.”</blockquote>
Each of the three groups mentioned as being pivotal to the class has a history of advocating for radical leftist ideas. The course syllabus links to &#8220;<a href="https://www.dcareaeducators4socialjustice.org/black-lives-matter/13-guiding-principles">Guiding Principles</a>&#8221; of the BLM movement, which include radical leftist ideas on race and gender. Among the 13 BLM movement principles listed on the website for &#8220;D.C. Area Educators for Social Justice&#8221; are commitments to be &#8220;queer affirming&#8221; and &#8220;trans affirming.&#8221; The &#8220;Guiding Principle&#8221; under transgender affirmation vows to &#8220;dismantle cis-gender privilege and uplift Black trans folk, especially Black trans women who continue to be disproportionately impacted by trans-antagonistic violence.&#8221;
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<a href="https://www.learningforjustice.org/about">Learning for Justice</a>, the second group listed on the syllabus, is part of the Southern Poverty Law Center, which aims to be &#8220;a catalyst for racial justice in the South and beyond, working in partnership with communities to dismantle white supremacy, strengthen intersectional movements and advance the human rights of all people.&#8221; The SPLC has been condemned for placing Christian and conservative organizations on its &#8220;Hate Map&#8221; that publicly tracks groups and individuals that it deems radical and hateful. Learning for Justice&#8217;s &#8220;<a href="https://www.learningforjustice.org/sites/default/files/2022-09/LFJ-Social-Justice-Standards-September-2022-09292022.pdf">Social Justice Standards</a>&#8221; seek to teach children as young as five years old about diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
The Abolitionist Teaching Network, another group that guides the MSU education class, encourages teachers to become activists.
&#8220;Abolitionist Teaching Network leverages teachers&#8217; and workers&#8217; power by offering resources for agitators and activists,&#8221; the group <a href="https://www.ewlhub.org/professional-development-resource-guide/abolitionist-teaching-network-">states</a>.
Another MSU education student who previously took TE 101 and spoke to The Daily Wire on condition of anonymity, said that the hyper-focus on race continues in courses beyond TE 101, especially in &#8220;<a href="https://reg.msu.edu/Courses/Search.aspx?CourseID=342088#Results">TE 102: Pedagogy and Politics of Justice and Equity in Education</a>.&#8221;
&#8220;I&#8217;ve had to write papers on different identities. You can choose race, gender, sexuality, income status. I think the goal is to have most students write about their whiteness,&#8221; the student said. &#8220;They teach that white people can&#8217;t see their identity. The core tenet of these classes feels like white people, especially white men, are the number one objection to what stands in the way of a better education system and a better society.&#8221;
The conservative student group, Young America&#8217;s Foundation, which first highlighted TE 101 at MSU, called the course&#8217;s content &#8220;divisive and discriminatory.&#8221;
&#8220;This kind of rhetoric only pushes Americans further apart, and is not only a waste of taxpayer money at a publicly funded university, but also a waste of students’ time,&#8221; Michigan State YAF added in a statement. &#8220;Do we really want our future educators teaching our children that an entire race is evil?&#8221;
Michigan State defended the class. A spokesperson for the university told The Daily Wire that the course &#8220;aligns with national teacher preparation standards, and its associated curriculum is reviewed through well-established academic governance processes at the department, college, and institutional level.&#8221; The spokesperson added that courses and curricula are approved by the department, which requires sign-off from the dean, and then approval by an independent curriculum committee.
Courses and curricula are also reviewed by the Office of Accreditation, Assessment, Curriculum, and Compliance and the University Curriculum Committee. After those reviews, the University Curriculum Committee votes for final approval.
&#8220;Michigan State University remains firmly committed to academic freedom, scholarly inquiry, and the preparation of educators who are well equipped to serve all students,&#8221; the MSU spokesperson added.
Since coming into office in January, President Donald Trump has signed executive orders seeking to crack down on DEI teachings at public universities. The Trump administration has <a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-dei-universities-investigated-f89dc9ec2a98897577ed0a6c446fae7b">launched</a> investigations into dozens of universities across the country over accusations that they pushed DEI programs on students and faculty, which led to racial discrimination.

Black Fist/Michigan State

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